Lord, I sometimes wander away from you. But this is not because I am deliberately turning my back on you. It is because of the inconstancy of my mind. I weaken in my intention to give my whole soul to you. I fall back into thinking of myself as my own master. But when I wander from you, my life becomes a burden, and within me I find nothing but darkness and wretchedness, fear and anxiety. So I come back to you, and confess that I have sinned against you. And I know you will forgive me.
- Aelred of Rievaulx (1110-1167)
Thanks, Brad, for sharing these prayers. What resource are you using? Thanks!
Eric, glad you are blessed by these prayers. I so much enjoy reading/reflecting on prayers from the ages. These and others that I will be sharing in the coming days come from several sources, but mostly from “Disciplines for the Inner Life” by Benson and Benson and “Book of Prayers” compiled by Robert Van de Weyer.